Breast Cancer awareness
Winnie Spitza
Issue date: 10/28/09 Section: Entertainment
By Winnie Spitza
October is officially known as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and this year marks the 25th Anniversary of celebrating awareness, education, and empowerment. The National Breast Cancer Awareness Month organization works together with government agencies, organizations, and medical associations to support breast cancer awareness, provide information on the disease, and make screening services more available for the prevention of breast cancer.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer accounts for one in four cancers among women in the United States. Although it was once recognized as a "classic" cancer of women over fifty, women are now being diagnosed at a younger age. Breast cancer develops primarily in women, but can also occur in men.
It is essential to educate yourself and become proactive in preserving your health. Therefore, it is important for both men and women to recognize changes in their own bodies and perform monthly self-breast exams. Here are the steps for performing a self-breast exam.
1. Lie down on your back and place your right arm behind your head.
2. Use the pads of your three middle fingers on your left hand to feel for lumps on your right breast.
3. Move around the breast in an up and down pattern. Start from the underarm and move across the breast to the middle of the chest.
4. Use three levels of pressure: light, medium, and firm. Use each pressure level to feel the breast before moving on to the next area.
5. Repeat the exam on your left breast by putting your left arm above your head and feeling the breast with the pads of your right three middle fingers. If any lumps or changes are found, please notify your physician of these changes.
6. Stand in front of a mirror with your hands pressed on your hips. Look at your breasts for changes in shape, size, redness/scaling, dimples, discharge or fluid, or an inverted nipple. Any of the following changes should be reported to your physician.
For more information, please visit http://www.nbcam.org, http://breastselfexam.ca, http://www.cancer.org.
October is officially known as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and this year marks the 25th Anniversary of celebrating awareness, education, and empowerment. The National Breast Cancer Awareness Month organization works together with government agencies, organizations, and medical associations to support breast cancer awareness, provide information on the disease, and make screening services more available for the prevention of breast cancer.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer accounts for one in four cancers among women in the United States. Although it was once recognized as a "classic" cancer of women over fifty, women are now being diagnosed at a younger age. Breast cancer develops primarily in women, but can also occur in men.
It is essential to educate yourself and become proactive in preserving your health. Therefore, it is important for both men and women to recognize changes in their own bodies and perform monthly self-breast exams. Here are the steps for performing a self-breast exam.
1. Lie down on your back and place your right arm behind your head.
2. Use the pads of your three middle fingers on your left hand to feel for lumps on your right breast.
3. Move around the breast in an up and down pattern. Start from the underarm and move across the breast to the middle of the chest.
4. Use three levels of pressure: light, medium, and firm. Use each pressure level to feel the breast before moving on to the next area.
5. Repeat the exam on your left breast by putting your left arm above your head and feeling the breast with the pads of your right three middle fingers. If any lumps or changes are found, please notify your physician of these changes.
6. Stand in front of a mirror with your hands pressed on your hips. Look at your breasts for changes in shape, size, redness/scaling, dimples, discharge or fluid, or an inverted nipple. Any of the following changes should be reported to your physician.
For more information, please visit http://www.nbcam.org, http://breastselfexam.ca, http://www.cancer.org.
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